First Watch: Preschool Teacher Joins Police Pursuit & a Friend Turned Captor

Summary

Crime House Daily
First Watch: Preschool Teacher Joins Police Pursuit & a Friend Turned Captor
December 2, 2025
Host: Katie Ring

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Episode Overview

In this episode, host Katie Ring presents two headline-grabbing true crime stories. The first is an unexpectedly uplifting account of a preschool teacher's heroic involvement in a police pursuit, while the second dives into a profoundly disturbing case of abuse and captivity among friends. Through her reporting, Katie maintains respect for the presumption of innocence and shares only currently available, publicly reported details.

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Case 1: A Preschool Teacher Joins a Police Pursuit

Timestamps: 02:52 – 07:33

Main Storyline

• Leslie Smith, a 46-year-old preschool teacher and mother of three from Slidell, Louisiana, becomes an unlikely hero during a shoplifting incident at a local Dillard’s.
• On November 1, 2025, 34-year-old Kelsey Baird attempted to shoplift from Dillard’s, only to be spotted by Sergeant Jeff Cars, who was working off-duty security. Kelsey fled to the parking lot and jumped into a waiting getaway car, driven by boyfriend Eric Boudreau.
• Leslie, on a shopping trip herself and prepping for a wedding, witnessed the pursuit, paused her errands, and offered Sergeant Cars a ride.
• Leslie’s daughter, on a video call, started recording the entire event and sending live updates to their family.

Notable Insights

• Leslie’s chase was humorous and law-abiding; she made sure to use her turn signals and follow all traffic rules, despite the ongoing pursuit.
• With Leslie keeping a visual, Sergeant Cars coordinated with backup who quickly blocked the getaway vehicle, resulting in both suspects’ arrests.
• Kelsey faced multiple charges, the most serious being felony methamphetamine possession, and posted a $30,000 bond. Eric's court situation remains unresolved.
• The police initially didn’t know Leslie’s identity, but after a social media search, she was invited to a ceremony where she received a Citizenship Award from the Slidell Police and Mayor Randy Fandel.
• Leslie remains humble about her actions, preferring to keep her preschool teaching job. She joked:

  “Kids run much slower than criminals.” – Leslie Smith (06:42)

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “I wasn’t actually. I just wanted to do whatever I could to help out.”
  — Leslie Smith on whether she was nervous to get involved (01:29)
• “Leslie put the award on her mantle to remind herself that, quote, doing something can mean everything, but she won’t be changing careers anytime soon.”
  — Katie Ring (07:15)

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Case 2: A Friend Turned Captor – Prolonged Abuse in Austin

Timestamps: 08:56 – 23:13

Main Storyline

• In Austin, Texas, a woman (the victim is referred to as "Jane" for privacy reasons), who suffers from untreated mental illness, was discovered chained and severely abused in the backyard of her longtime friend, Mishae Carney.
• On October 30, 2025, a neighbor’s 911 call (alerted by screaming) brought police to a grim mobile home: windows covered, "Beware of Dog" and "No Trespassing" warnings everywhere.
• Officers found Jane shackled to a punching bag stand, contorted, injured, malnourished, partially naked, and with evidence of pellet gun wounds. The cuffs were embedded into her skin and had to be cut off by firefighters.
• Five adults from the home (Mishae Carney, Juan Castro, Michelle Garcia, Crystal Garcia, and Maynard Lefevers) were arrested at the scene. Three children present were taken into CPS custody.

Key Facts & Revelations

• Jane’s injuries indicated months of restraint, physical abuse, and starvation. “Large chunks of flesh missing from her hands and feet, extensive scarring, and a brutally battered face.” (09:57)
• The family gave a raft of justifications: to “stop Jane from stealing,” to “protect the neighbors,” to “discipline” her—none legally or morally valid.
• Mishae’s sister said Jane was only “50-50 capable of consent,” due to several mental health diagnoses. Instead of seeking help for Jane, the household resorted to cruelty, including handcuffing and beating her, often in front of young children.
• One of the most chilling moments:

  “Juan’s 4 year old son witnessed him torturing Jane and told the police that his dad shot her when she was bad and that Misha would watch when Jane was being tortured.” — Katie Ring (16:44)

• The abuse escalated: Jane was beaten with a bat for allegedly taking tools. She was left outside overnight, unclothed, in cold weather, and was only fed one plate of food per day.
• All five adults were charged with first-degree aggravated kidnapping, aggravated assault, injury to elderly or disabled, and unlawful restraint. Their bails range up to $305,000 with conditions including no contact with Jane or each other, no weapons, and participation in counseling.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “Instead of simply asking her to move out or not come by anymore, they restrained her in the backyard and M’s family even admitted to doing this.” — Katie Ring (09:41)
• “It wasn’t enough that they just kept Jane chained up … they made sure to make it extra painful by pinning both of her wrists behind her back.” — Katie Ring (12:08)
• “Whatever happens moving forward, we hope that if the five suspects are proven guilty, they’re never able to hurt another person again, that the children who witness these alleged crimes find positive, nurturing and healing environments to grow up in, and that Jane gets the care she needs and finds a better situation for herself.” — Katie Ring (22:25)

Call to Action

• Katie urges listeners with information to contact Austin police or Crime Stoppers, and promises to update the audience as the investigation continues.

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Memorable Moments

• Human resilience and heroism: Leslie Smith’s humble and brave action in a real-life pursuit—“doing something can mean everything.” (07:15)
• The horror of betrayal by friends: Jane’s years-long friendship with Mishae Carney, ending in unimaginable cruelty.

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Key Takeaways

• Everyday people like Leslie Smith can make extraordinary impacts in moments of crisis—sometimes by simply choosing to get involved.
• Crime and cruelty can hide in plain sight, and sometimes the worst offenders are those closest to the victim.
• The justice system is actively responding to both cases, with legal processes ongoing.

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Heroic Preschool Teacher Police Pursuit: 02:52 – 07:33
• Discovery and Rescue of Jane in Austin: 08:56 – 23:13
• Reflections, legal updates, and call for tips: 22:25 – 23:13

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For more real-time updates, follow Crime House Daily’s social media (@crimehouse247).

Transcript

[Katie Ring]

Hi Crime House Community. It's Katie looking for another Crime House original podcast to add to your rotation. You will love Clues with Morgan Abshur and Kaylin Moore. Every Wednesday, Morgan and Kaylin dig into the world's most notorious crimes, clue by clue.

From serial killers to shocking murders. They follow the trail of clues, break down the evidence and debate the theories.

It's like hanging out with your smart and true crime obsessed friends. Listen to clues on Apple Podcasts, Spotify.

Amazon Music or wherever you listen to podcasts. This is Crime House. Our first story today is actually an uplifting and quite entertaining story about a mom's role in a criminal pursuit and arrested. Our second story, however, is not so happy and shows a darker side of humanity after a woman was found chained in a backyard by her own friends. Let's get into it.

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A video from a slide out police.

[Katie Ring]

Chase went viral after a woman stopped.

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To give the officer a ride. Check this out.

[Sergeant Jeff Cars]

Quick pursuit for Dillards white female, gray top. He runs after her across the parking lot, but it looks like he's out of luck as the accused thief jumps into a getaway car.

[Katie Ring]

Get out.

[Sergeant Jeff Cars]

Stop. Stop the vehic the Were you nervous at all to get involved?

[Katie Ring]

I wasn't actually.

[Sergeant Jeff Cars]

I just wanted to do whatever I could to help out.

[Katie Ring]

Hi, welcome to Crime House Daily.

I'm your host Katie Ring. Here we follow the cases making headlines now where justice is still unfolding. Follow us wherever you're listening and if you want ad free episodes, subscribe to Crime House plus on Apple Podcasts. This episode discusses active criminal cases and breaking news.

The information we share is based on.

What'S publicly available at the time of recording and may change as new evidence comes to light. We aim to inform, not to decide, guilt or innocence.

So everyone mentioned is presumed innocent until.

Proven guilty in a court of law.

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Shopping trip turned into a low speed police chase so let me tell you about 46 year old preschool teacher Leslie Smith and how she became a community hero. Leslie is the loving mother of three children. She was born at Slidell Memorial Hospital in South Louisiana and had lived her whole life and raised her kids in a small city just 20 miles away from New Orleans. Slidell offers all the culture of its sister city along with water based recreation, a charming historic old town and ample shopping, which is exactly what people were doing at Dillard's department store on Saturday, November 1, 2025. However, 34 year old Kelsey Baird had something different in mind. She was looking to get some new stuff, but she wasn't planning on paying for it. Kelsey didn't hide her intentions well though. Someone spotted her shoplifting and notified Sergeant Jeff Cars of Slidell Police Department who was working a paid security detail that day. When Kelsey saw him coming towards her, she dumped the items she'd been trying to steal and ran into the parking lot. Sergeant Cars was hot on her heels, but Kelsey's boyfriend, 43 year old Eric Boudreau of Biloxi, Mississippi was waiting for her in his car. She jumped in and they sped off just as Sergeant Cars was reaching Eric's car. It seemed like they were going to get away, but Sergeant Cars was about to get some unexpected help that day. Leslie Smith was doing some shopping of her own to get ready for a wedding she and her husband were leaving for that night. She'd cleared out the inside of her car to make room for luggage and was on her way to pick up a couple suits. But when she saw Sergeant Cars running after Kelsey Baird, Leslie put her errands on hold and her only thought was how can I help? So Leslie rolled up to Sergeant Cars and asked him if he wanted to hop into her suv. He jumped in without hesitation and the two of them took off after Kelsey and Eric. While this was all happening, Leslie's daughter had a front row seat to the action because she had been on a video call with her mom when Leslie offered to help Sergeant Cars. So she started screen recording the whole thing and sending their family play by play updates. It wasn't exactly a high speed pursuit though. Leslie's impulse was to follow all of the rules of the road. She even made sure to put on her blinkers every time she made a turn. But with Sergeant Carr's guidance, she was able to keep a visual on the getaway vehicle, which gave Sergeant Cars the time he needed to call for backup. After about two minutes, his fellow officers joined the chase and quickly had Kelsey's boyfriend's car surrounded. As Sergeant Cars jumped out to take her and Eric into custody, Leslie thanked him for his service. Leslie made a U turn and drove to a TJ Maxx to meet up with her son. Going about her day like she hadn't just gotten into the middle of a police chase. In the meantime, Kelsey Baird and Eric Boudreau were both charged with misdemeanor theft and resisting an officer by flight. Kelsey was also charged with felony possession of methamphetamine and she had to pay a thirty thousand dollar bond to avoid being held in custody for the felony charge. She's scheduled to appear in the 22nd Judicial District Court in Covington, Louisiana on the morning of December 16, 2025. Meanwhile, records don't show what Eric's court schedule will look like. After their arrest, Sgt. Cars realized he hadn't even gotten his chase driver's name, but but he really wanted to thank her. So the Slidell Police Department took to social media trying to find their Good Samaritan. Once word got out, Leslie came forward and humbly said she didn't want any sort of recognition for what she'd done. But Sergeant Cars and his fellow officers insisted on honoring her. On Tuesday, November 4, 2025, Leslie was presented the Citizenship Award by the Slidell Police Department and Mayor Randy Fandel. At the ceremony, Slidell's police chief thanked Leslie for jumping in to help without hesitation and without expecting anything in return. He said people like her are the reason why Slidell is a great place to live and work. As for Leslie, she told reporters how impressed she was with the police department's hard work and responsiveness in the shoplifting. Leslie put the award on her mantle to remind herself that, quote, doing something can mean everything, but she won't be changing careers anytime soon. Leslie joked that she's happy to remain a preschool teacher because kids run much slower than criminals.

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Close your eyes, exhale. Feel your body relax and let go of whatever you're carrying today. Well, I'm letting go of the worry that I wouldn't get my new contacts in time for this class. I got them delivered free from 1-800-contacts. Oh my gosh, they're so fast. And breathe. Oh, sorry. I almost couldn't breathe when I saw the discount they gave me on my first order. Oh, sorry. Namaste. Visit 1-800-contacts.com today to save on your first order 1-800-contacts. As inspiring as our first case was, this next one is equally horrifying. It's the worst friendship breakup story I've heard in my entire life and. And makes you question how some people can be so incredibly cruel. The victim's name in this case hasn't been released to preserve her safety and to protect the integrity of the ongoing case. So we'll call her Jane. As of this recording, all we know is that she's a black woman who's currently struggling with untreated mental illness. Earlier this year, Jane was living with her friend Mishae Carney and three generations of Misha's family, including her sister, mother and kids. But somewhere along the way, that bond snapped, and Jane's housemates allegedly decided to kick her out in the most inhumane way possible. On the morning of Thursday, October 30, 2025, a resident on Bitter Creek Drive in the south side of Austin, Texas, called 911 for an urgent welfare check. They'd heard a woman screaming in the backyard of a mobile home along the street. At 9:09am, the Austin Police Department arrived on the scene. The owners of the small, rundown property clearly didn't want people looking into their business. The mobile home's windows were covered up with foil, and a privacy fence that enclosed their yard was plastered with Beware of DOG and no trespassing signs that said we don't call 911 with pictures of pistols and what Appears to be an AR15 rifle. But the police weren't going to let that stop them from investigating. And what they found was absolutely horrific. When they entered the small, dirt packed backyard, they found the woman in question, Jane. She was shackled to a punching bag stand. She'd been chained to it in a way that painfully contorted her body. Not only that, she'd been severely injured and was naked from the waist down. And according to Jane, she'd been chained up like this for months. She had large chunks of flesh missing from her hands and feet, extensive scarring all over her body, and a brutally battered face. The left side of her mouth was swollen, and she couldn't open her right eye at all. When the police tended to her on site, they found a green BB pellet in the victim's bra and another attached to duct tape in her shirt, indicating she'd been shot in a sick form of punishment, Making the situation even more terrifying. The thick metal was so rusted that the Austin police couldn't even free Jane from her shackles right away. They had to wait for the fire department to arrive with the equipment they needed to cut them off. The handcuffs were closed around Jane's arms and wrists so tightly, they were visibly digging into her skin and causing open wounds. She was visibly in pain when the officers tried to remove them. When the cuffs did finally come off, Jane's wrists were so swollen and bloody, she couldn't fully move her hands. As this was all going on and Jane was being treated on site, five people ran out of the trailer and tried to flee, but all five were successfully caught and detained. They were later identified as 32 year old Mishae Carney, Jane's friend, 30 year old Juan Castro, Michea's husband, 51 year old Michelle Garcia, Michea's mother, 21 year old Crystal Garcia, Micha's sister and Michelle's other daughter, and 21 year old Maynard Lefevers, a family friend. According to Jane, they had all participated in the abuse. There were also three children living in the trailer home who were removed and placed in the custody of child protective Services. In the meantime, Austin Travis county emergency medical services transported the terrified and wounded victim to South Austin hospital. There, doctors confirmed that Jane's injuries showed evidence of prolonged restraint and numerous pellet gunshots. These wounds were horrific on their own. But what made this awful situation even worse was that Jane and M. Had been friends for years. According to M, Jane had even lived with them for nearly a decade. But one day, Micha and her family decided they just didn't like her anymore. However, instead of simply asking her to move out or not come by anymore, they restrained her in the backyard and M's family even admitted to doing this. They had different stories about why they resorted to this kind of cruelty. But of course, there's no excuse for doing this kind of thing to anyone, and their reasons expose them as monsters.

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After her arrest, Mishae Carney, Jane's friend, had different excuses for why they'd restrained her in the backyard. According to Misha, they'd done it to stop Jane from stealing from their neighbors. She said that Jane's crimes were obvious enough that the neighbors had started complaining about it. The clerk of a nearby gas station has said that Jane did steal from their store. But even if this is true, it's still not a reason to restrain and torture someone. And as if this made it any better, some of Misha's family members said that Jane could come and go during the day and was only locked up from about 10pm to 10am how generous of them. In another seeming attempt to explain herself, M said that Until a few weeks prior, Jane had actually been handcuffed inside in the kitchen. But they had to move her into the backyard because the room started smelling like urine and excrement from relieving herself. I highly doubt they were letting her out if this was the case. That part of the story was disputed, though by Misha's husband, Juan. According to him, Jane had been living in the yard for years, although Jane herself said she'd only been there since July. But again, either way, it was completely inhumane. Misha's mom, Michelle, said she started handcuffing Jane outside because she was going to the bathroom outside and Michelle didn't want neighbors to see. This doesn't even make sense since Jane would have to keep relieving herself in the backyard if she was handcuffed there. But not to worry. According to Misha, Jane agreed to be handcuffed in the yard as a condition of her living in the house. Which doesn't mean she was living in the house if she's handcuffed outside of the house. But I digress. Not that this would be legal anyway. And given Jane's struggles with mental illness, Misha's sister Crystal admitted that she was only 50. 50 capable of consent. Everyone in the family agreed that Jane suffered from mental health issues. Two of them seemed to know that she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Crystal added that Jane also had narcolepsy and other mental health diagnoses. But instead of getting their friend help, they tortured her. And it wasn't enough that they just kept Jane chained up to a metal exercise stand in the back. They made sure to make it extra painful by pinning both of her wrists behind her back. She was forced to sleep outside on the ground and was only fed one plate of food at dinner time. Michelle said they limited her feeding because Jane had gotten chunky. But even this insane excuse didn't hold up because Jane appeared malnourished when the police found her. As police questioned the five perpetrators, they learned that this all went beyond passive cruelty to active assault. Misha's husband Juan, went out and bought an electric rifle style BB gun for the sole purpose of shooting her. Juan straight up decided he wanted to shoot at Jane because he didn't like her and just because she'd allegedly taken some of his tools. When he would come home from work, he would take the gun out of his closet and chase Jane around the yard, firing the pellets at her. To me, he just sounds like a psychopath. Compounding the horror of the situation. This was all done in front of their kids. Juan's 4 year old son witnessed him torturing Jane and told the police that his dad shot her when she was bad and that Misha would watch when Jane was being tortured. The little boy could hear her screams from inside the house. And it wasn't just Juan and Misha who were hurting her. All of the adults in the house allegedly participated in shooting her. They positioned Jane with her shoulders wrapped forward or backward around the exercise equipment, depending on where they wanted to hit her. In recent days, their friend Mayard had also beaten Jane with a bat. He hit her in her liver, stomach and legs. Jane had grown so weak that on October 29, 2025, the night before she was rescued, the pants she was wearing slipped down because they didn't fit her malnourished body properly. Without being fed her single meal of the day, Jane was left handcuffed to the stand in the backyard overnight without pants or even underwear. As the temperature dropped into the 40s, Jane cried and begged to be let go. But her plea was only met by threats of harsher punishments if she kept yelling. But thankfully, she didn't stop calling for help and when the police arrived, Michael, Michelle, Juan, Crystal and Menard were all arrested and charged with first degree aggravated kidnapping, aggravated assault, injury to elderly or disabled, and unlawful restraint. As of this recording, Michelle and Micha's individual bail amounts are set for $305,000 and it's attached to several conditions. They cannot possess firearms, ammunition or BB guns. They must complete a Travis County Counseling and Education Services violence assessment. They cannot contact the victim or their co defendants and they must follow a CPS parenting plan. Crystal, Juan and Menard have almost identical bail conditions, except these three have the added requirement that they remain at least 200 yards from Jane. As of this recording, none of them have court dates scheduled. Misha and Juan will also face the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services in civil court on the morning of Monday, December 15, 2025. They are disputing the removal of their children, but I think we can all agree that they shouldn't be in possession of children or caring for children because everything they did was absolutely insane. As of this recording, they all remain in Travis County Jail. In the meantime, the investigation is still ongoing. If you have any information about this case, please contact the Austin Police Department's Human trafficking unit at 512-974-4786. If you'd like to remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at austincrimestoppers.org or 512-472-8477 Whatever happens moving forward, we hope that if the five suspects are proven guilty, they're never able to hurt another person again, that the children who witness these alleged crimes find positive, nurturing and healing environments to grow up in, and that Jane gets the care she needs and finds a better situation for herself. As always, we'll keep you up to date on any new information that may come to light. What did you think of today's cases? Drop your thoughts and theories in the comments. See you next time if you haven't already. Follow us wherever you're listening Rimehouse daily. And make sure to follow us on social media rimehouse247 for real time updates. Because the pursuit of justice never stops.

Looking for your next crime house? Listen, don't miss Clues with Morgan Abshur and Kaylin Moore Every Wednesday, Morgan and Kaylin take you deep into the world.

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It's like hanging out with your smart, true crime obsessed friends. Listen to Clues on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music or wherever you listen to podcasts.